PHOENIX — Police have arrested a suspect after a 10-year-old girl was shot and killed in an apparent road rage incident on Wednesday night.
THE SHOOTING
Officers say the shooting happened around 5:45 p.m. local time Wednesday. Phoenix police say 10-year-old Summerbell Brown was in a car with her father, mother and sister when a white four-door pickup truck started following them.
When the family pulled into the driveway of their home, someone in the truck opened fire on their vehicle before taking off in an unknown direction.
Police say Summerbell and her father Dharquintium were shot. Summerbell died from her injuries Thursday morning, according to police. Her father was treated at the hospital and later released.
The mother and other daughter were not injured.
"This nightmare is going to replay in my head forever," Taniesha Brown said of her daughter. "I can't sleep. I hope she's at peace."
It is unclear at this time what prompted the suspect in the pickup to start shooting, but police suspect road rage may be to blame.
"He was ready to start shooting. I got out of my vehicle, and asked him, 'What's going on?' Because he stopped at my house," said Dharquintium Brown. "I asked him, 'What's up?' And he just got to firing. He shot my car, and he shot me, and he shot up my house and he killed my daughter."
"It's possible that it could've begun on the roadway just by virtue of the fact that the car was following the other so closely before they arrived," Phoenix police Sgt. Vince Lewis said.
THE ARREST
#BREAKING: First look at 20-year-old suspect arrested after deadly shooting of 10-year-old girl during apparent road rage incident https://t.co/KgxrpWcRmb #abc15 pic.twitter.com/kKrh3CUKQI
— ABC15 Arizona (@abc15) April 5, 2019
On Thursday, police released a sketch of the suspect and information about the vehicle believed to be involved, including surveillance video that shows a truck closely following the family's vehicle in a neighborhood.
Police received a tip from the community that led them to the suspect's vehicle at a home. The vehicle's tires and wheels had been changed to alter the appearance.
Investigators also located a handgun in the garage of the home that was forensically linked to the shooting.
Officials identified the suspect as 20-year-old Joshua Gonzales, who was booked into jail on a count of first-degree murder and three counts of aggravated assault.
Police say they have had numerous contacts with the suspect in the past.
ROAD RAGE PROBLEMS IN PHOENIX
The incident marks the seventh road rage attack in 2019 and the fifth in the last three weeks, according to news reports from Scripps station KNXV in Phoenix.
Police offered safety information for others concerned about dangers from other drivers on the road.
"Get to a safe location, and if you can't, and you have the ability to make a phone call, go ahead and call Phoenix police or call 911. Let them know that you're being followed by an aggressive driver," Lewis said.
